Famagusta in the eastern part of North Cyprus is a city with an ancient history. Founded in the 3rd century BC. e. king of Egypt, she managed to stay and the residence of Richard the Lionheart, and one of the Christian centers of the entire Mediterranean, and the British port.
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How to get to
Every half an hour from the capital of the country, Nicosia, the Itimat buses go to Famagusta. Travel time is about 1 hour.
Search air tickets to Nicosia (nearest airport to Famagusta)
Transport in the city
According to Famagusta most convenient to travel in a rented car: the bus service in the city is very irregular. Another option - a taxi ride, while the price is better to negotiate in advance. However, the city can be easily explored on foot: the distances there are small. True, tourists should be careful not to enter special quarantine zones controlled by the Turkish army or UN troops.
Famagusta Hotels
In the city and its suburbs you can find both excellent 5 * level institutions, for example, Kaya Artemis Resort & Casino, Palm Beach Hotel and Salamis Bay Conti Resort, as well as more budget options such as "kopeck piece" in the city center, as well as two bungalows on the beach - Long Beach Club Resort and Kocaries Holiday Village. See also the full list of Famagusta hotels.
Shopping and markets
In Famagusta a wide choice of shops of clothes, gifts and household utensils. Most of them are along the street Salamis Road. In the old city (within the city walls) there are pretty souvenir shops where you can find Cypriot homemade souvenirs, for example, lacework.
Kitchen and Restaurants
There are restaurants in the old as well as in the new city. In the historical center, they are located mainly near Namık Kemal Square. For example, D & B Cafe offers excellent pizza and kebabs. If you like Turkish cuisine in general and kebabs in particular - visit the Aspava cafe, which is across the street from the D & B Cafe. Recently opened Ginko Restaurant (occupies the building of the former madrasah - the Ottoman school), offers a very interesting menu. In Monk's Inn Bistro & Bar you can taste delicious sandwiches and just have a quick snack.
In a modern city restaurants should be sought in the area of the street Salamis Road. Here is the majority of bars. You can also spend a pleasant evening and have a drink-another in the Famagusta Quayside area (near the Palm Beach Hotel). There are a lot of cozy bars where local and tourists like to spend time.
Entertainment, excursions and attractions in Famagusta
The old town of Famagusta is surrounded by some of the best preserved Venetian fortifications in the world, and inside the fortress walls there are many medieval Renaissance buildings and structures. The city became a full-fledged fortress in 1562, when the walls were radically rebuilt and fortified. The height of the walls reached 15-17 meters, and the length - about 3, 6 kilometers.
The fortress was led by two gates: sea (from the port) and land (from the side of the road to Nicosia). Around the walls there was a deep channel, lined with a stone, which was filled with sea water. What made the fortress inaccessible not only from the sea, but also from the land.
Inside the Citadel
The old ground gates lead to the vast courtyard of the citadel, where there are fragments of Venetian arms, stone nuclei, old bronze cannons. From the grounds of the Othello tower - one of the best panoramic sites of the city - offers an excellent view of the port, always lively and noisy. From here you can see the sea gate over which the Venetian emblem is mounted.
Inside the fortress, among the most famous monuments are the Gothic Cathedral of St. Nicholas (during the Ottoman conquests converted to the mosque Lala Mustafa Pasha) and the Greek church of St. George with wonderful frescoes. Buildings of the same historical value are located here literally on every corner.
Another noteworthy attraction is the palace of the Venetian Governor Giovanni Reviere and the square with a magnificent marble Roman sarcophagus, ancient cannons and antique statues. Also do not forget to visit Othello Castle, the story described by Shakespeare happened just here.
The bastions of Famagusta
For a survey of the old city, go to the bastion of Ravelin, located on one of the peaks of the fortress. At the beginning of the ascent to the bastion is the building of the post office, built in 1618. Once there was one of the first Qur'anic Qur'anic madrasah schools.
The Jambulata bastion can be found on the southern wall of Famagusta. Previously, inside the bastion was a Venetian arsenal, after the capitulation of the city there was buried an officer of the Turkish army Kilis Beydzhi Dzhambulat - one of the bravest warriors of Northern Cyprus. Now in the bastion is located the museum of Dzhambulata, where you can see interesting antiquities: weapons, Turkish costumes and ceramics samples dating from the siege period. Special attention should be paid to a detailed copy of the Venetian plan of the siege of the city.
Salamin
10 minutes drive from the city of Famagusta is the ancient city of Salamis with its well-preserved amphitheater, baths and ancient basilicas, it was here that the apostle Mark and the apostle Barnabas preached. Not far from Salamina is the monastery of the apostle Barnabas, the founder of Christianity in Cyprus. His tomb is in a small chapel 100 meters from the monastery. Photos Famagusta (7)